Violence threatens as DR Congo election results announced

The main challenger in Democratic Republic of Congo's election declared himself president yesterday, rejecting provisional official results handing victory to incumbent Joseph Kabila. The head of the electoral commission said yesterday Kabila won nearly 49 percent of the votes to rival Etienne Tshisekedi's roughly 32 percent, results some observers later said appeared suspicious.

Clashes between tire-burning protesters and security forces broke out in the mostly pro-opposition capital, Kinshasa, amid mounting fears that the dispute over election results would reignite conflict in the war-scarred central African state. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon led calls from the international community urging the Congolese people to avoid violence over the results.

The November 28 poll was Congo's first locally organized presidential contest since a war that killed more than 5 million, and is meant to move the country toward stability and encourage investment after years of conflict and turmoil.

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